Viewpoint - is it affordable housing and is it really a part of Arbourthorne?

Most of the housing in Arbourthorne has historically been council housing, though some areas have been changing recently with an increasing influx of new builds for private and social housing.

One such example is the private build 'Viewpoint', situated on Myrtle Road. I have been to view these houses, on the inside and around the grounds and I have formed an opinion that they're really nice. Furthermore, that the view these properties present of the city is quite stunning, enough to make me want to live there.

But what does it mean for local people, for the people going to be living there and for the company building these homes?

Two things have struck me about this site since the build started. Firstly, the effort that was made to move masses of land and soil to the top end of the plot has simply been to create a huge bank of soil. This means people living on Hallyburton and on Lichford Road have now lost the magnifcant view they once had. It also has the effect of separating the new build from the main council estate. I was left wondering if this attempt of a boundary was to hide the new build to create a small community of privileged house buyers within Arbourthorne? I hope rumour is correct that this bank would be removed later to create a park and play area for the community to enjoy, but no evidence of that seems to have emerged just yet.

Secondly, I have found that the properties start from £120,000 to £200,000 for a 2 bedroom apartment. I am not so surprised to find that no provision has been made for affordable housing. The Green Party in Sheffield is seeking to ensure at least 25% of new properties are affordable. Take a lone, public sector, working professional earning £25,000, the maximum mortgage they could get is £75,000 at three times their salary. Indeed, the Independent (13th April 2007) is quoted as saying that more than two thirds of towns are unaffordable for key public sector workers as according to research by the Halifax Building Society. Aditionally, nurses and firefighters face the greatest difficulty, with 99 per cent of towns unaffordable in March 2007 for nurses, and 97 per cent beyond the finances of firefighters.

The only way a young couple can afford such homes is to pool their resources for a mortgage at 4 or 5 times their salary. What then are their financial prospects in the future at maintaining such high mortgages? what happens when interest rates get high, inflation keeps going up and there becomes a downturn in the housing economy?

We know that without good planning, local people will sorely miss out on opportunities that new builds could potentially bring. This means that if the new walk and park area is not created, the Arbourthorne people already living around Viewpoint will feel pushed out. The new house buyers who move in, will also miss out. They will miss out on a good start in life with an unaffordable mortage in a society with increasingly unsustainable house prices. additionally, the barrier created around the site will also add to the new arrivals feeling increasingly insular within their own self built community simply because they are not a part of the wider council housing community.

What is clear from the Sheffield Green Party Manifesto (2007) is that everyone has the right to live in accommodation that is safe, warm and suitable for their needs. Council planning and policy should create self-reliant communities with a mix of tenures and affordability in each area. Tenants and lease holders should have real democratic control over how their housing is managed.

But at least the company building these will have gained much, with low costs used to purchase and secure resources to build the properties, and the high profits made from the sales, means that globalwide investors will benefit from this windfall. This ultimately means that very little money will have been put back in order to strengthen and build the existing community.

There has to be a greener way of managing an unsustainable boom in house prices, and a greener way of developing a community with a wonderful potential to flourish and grow for the benefit of everyone living in Arbourthorne. This is what building sustainable and thriving communities is all about, and not about building segregated homes that 'look nice'.